Chapter 5

For the next few days, Betty kept me under house arrest.

Finally, she and Hailey went out shopping, giving me a chance to slip away and find Lily.

When I snuck into the house, I saw my tiny daughter kneeling on the floor, scrubbing it with a rag.

I rushed over and pulled her up. "What are you doing?!"

"Hailey said I made the floor dirty. She said if I don't clean it, I can't leave."

"Mommy, you should go."

Unlike her excitement from a few days ago, Lily was cold and pushed me away.

I froze, then pulled her small body into a tight hug.

"Did Hailey threaten you? Don't be scared, baby. Tell Mommy, I'll protect you."

Finally, Lily broke down in my arms, sobbing uncontrollably.

She cried and told me that whenever Julian wasn't home, Hailey and Henry would abuse her together.

Even the maids called her the daughter of a criminal bitch.

She had to beg and please Hailey just to get scraps of food and be allowed to sleep in a real bed.

Otherwise, Hailey would lock her in the dark basement.

She was so young, yet so helpless and broken.

My heart bled for her.

I wanted to take Lily right then, but the maids blocked the door.

Helpless, I had to leave alone first.

The moment I got out, I uploaded the evidence of Julian and Hailey's child abuse to YouTube.

In less than a day, the video went viral.

They were dragged to the top of the trending charts.

Hashtags like #Child Abuse#, #Unfit Parents#, and #Monsters# became overnight sensations.

Although the posts were quickly taken down by Julian's PR team, the damage was done. Reporters swarmed them.

Unable to handle the public backlash, they held a live press conference.

At the press conference, tiny Lily sat in the middle, flanked by Julian and Hailey.

"Please don't believe the rumors," Julian said into the microphone. "Sophia fabricated everything to steal custody of our daughter."

"Lily is my own flesh and blood. I would never abuse her."

Hailey wiped a fake tear.

"Yes, Lily is my sister Sophia's daughter, which makes her my daughter too."

"Sophia was sent to prison three years ago. As soon as she got out, she demanded money from us. When we refused, she used Lily to smear our names."

Lily sat between them, silent and trembling.

Instantly, the public turned on me.

"And here I thought the parents were monsters. Turns out the real demon is the biological mother!"

"Some people will say anything for money."

"Mr. Rodriguez and Miss Miller have always had a great reputation."

"But this Sophia woman was just released from prison. She clearly has issues."

"What a piece of trash, exploiting her own kid!"

Hailey looked at me through the cameras, throwing me a victorious smirk.

She spoke into the microphone with fake pity.

"Please don't blame Sophia. She went through a lot in prison, so it's natural she has some resentment. I hope everyone can show her some grace."

With that, she grabbed Lily's hand to leave.

I watched Lily walk away, trapped in a crowd of angry reporters, unable to reach her.

Just as I was about to sink into despair, Lily suddenly snatched her hand away from Hailey and ran back toward the microphones.

"My mommy didn't lie! Hailey is the liar!" she screamed, pointing at Hailey.

The entire room gasped.